'Dozens of new faces' visit Shrewsbury pub after it launched football pool in beer garden
A pub is experiencing a 'record high' number of visitors thanks to a new attraction that mixes two passions - for football and pool.
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The new outdoor football pool table at The Red Barn pub on Longden Road, Shrewsbury, has been pulling in 'dozens of new faces' which has delighted the licensee.
Pub operator, Brent Catterson said: “I’d wanted to do something different for a while and was brainstorming some new ideas to get the community more involved, it was then that I came across the football pool concept.
“It’s something fun and quirky and I knew instantly that it would be popular with our local guests. After playing around with the idea, I reached out to a couple of friends, and we immediately put our plans to action.”
Within a matter of weeks, Brent and friends Colin and Andy, had successfully built the Red Barn’s outdoor football pool table and guests couldn’t wait to give it a try.
“We held an opening day to launch the football pool table, and I’ve been overwhelmed by all the positive feedback,” Brent said.
“Since we opened it up to the public on the May 18, it’s been fully booked ever since! We knew it would be a hit with guests, because there’s nothing else like it here in the Midlands, but the increase in footfall has been huge, the community have been nothing but supportive!”
Guests can book to play football pool by contacting Brent via the Red Barn’s Facebook page, by calling the pub or heading inside to reserve their slot. The game itself is completely free, and bookable for one hour with just a £20 deposit required to cover the cost of the balls.
Brent is now encouraging fellow publicans to consider building a similar feature, he added: “The outlay is pretty hefty, but you have to trust the process. It’s great to see our guests getting involved and enjoying it, and I’m confident that this is something we’ll be able to use all year-round.
“Our next big event is the Euros, we’re already excited to see new faces join in and are looking ahead to ensure that football pool is accessible all year round.”
The Red Barn is a part of Punch, an independent pub company with around 1,300 pubs across the UK.
It was recognised as Best Partnership Pub Company (501 plus sites) at the 2024 Publican Awards and Best Leased and Tenanted Pub Company 2022 and 2020. It offers award-winning training programmes delivered out of a brand-new Training Academy. It has invested over £192m into its pub estate over the last six years.
